


The Stars Can't Outshine the Sun

by Lazchan



Category: Servamp (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 09:44:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8008621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lazchan/pseuds/Lazchan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shuuhei is a little too direct in his desire to make sure Mahiru and Licht know exactly what they're dealing with the Servamps, neither of them care.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Stars Can't Outshine the Sun

"You are aware…" Mahiru looked up from where he was relaxing with Kuro, the servamp in cat form resting in his lap. Shuuhei was staring down at them, his features marred by an annoyed frown.

"I'm aware of what?" Mahiru yawned and half-closed his eyes. He felt like he should reply as Kuro would, like he always did in these types of situations. As if he could read Mahiru's thoughts, Kuro opened one eye to give him an amused look, but didn't comment.

"That you're stuck with that monster for the rest of our life." Shuuhei snapped, clearly annoyed that Mahiru wasn't more focused on him and the most serious of conversations he was trying to have. It wasn’t as if Shuuhei's intense dislike of vampires was unknown, or he hadn't tried to press upon Kuro's 'monster' nature before, but he was especially vehement tonight.

This particular drab of information was said with such ferocity, that Mahiru looked down to Kuro, eyebrows raised in silent question. It wasn't as if the news particularly shocking _or_ distressing. Frankly, he didn't think he could go back to a life without Kuro in it. He wouldn't say it out loud to Kuro—he could practically hear the _what a pain_ comment. He was more than pleased to keep up the not-care attitude that Kuro so easily wielded, not because of any maliciousness, but because it was simpler to not kick up a fuss over something so trivial.

"Makes sense," was all he said, covering another yawn with his hand, before resting it in Kuro's soft fur, stroking in gentle motions. He felt warm and relaxed, like he was sinking into a gentle corner of Kuro's mind, one that held contentment at the comforting touches, instead of the pain of sharp-edged memories that he had traversed before. "Kuro mentioned it already that it was a contract."

"If he's killed, you'd be free, though." Shuuhei seemed to compelled to point that out, as if Mahiru _hadn't_ seen what had happened to Lily or Hyde when their contracts were severed. It held the weight of a threat and that had Mahiru snapping out of his sleepy state. The hand that wasn't resting in Kuro's fur tensed at his side, the weapon that he had been given struggling to appear at his reaction to the threat to Kuro.

Kuro pressed his paws on top of Mahiru's wrist and it seemed to stop him for the moment, when Licht and Hyde pushed into the room, narrowing in the way Mahiru was tensed and glaring fiercely up at Shuuhei, one hand still protectively on Kuro and Kuro's pose equally protective.

The appearance of Hyde and Licht seemed to be the final breaking point for Shuuhei, or his anger found a new target. He whirled around and jabbed his finger in the direction of the Greed pair, hands shaking slightly. " _That_ one kills every Eve he gets! The paperwork we have on that one alone—" he nearly sobbed out his words and the silence in the room hung heavy for a moment as all eyes went to Hyde.

It wasn't a surprise to Kuro or Mahiru—Pride had most matter of factly stated the end that Greed's Eves met, but Mahiru wondered if Licht had knew.  All eyes went to Licht, who only glared at the tense Hyde and smacked him upside the head without warning. "Just try it, you shitty rat," he snapped. "It's my duty to kill you, not the other way around."

"Then why don't you?" Shuuhei stepped forward, acting as if he had found an ally in Licht's remarks. Mahiru hid a smile as he looked down at Kuro, who held the same sort of sardonic amusement at the situation as he had when Mahiru had assumed too quickly. They both turned their heads to take in the volatile reaction.

"Did I ask you?" Licht snapped, yanking Hyde forward when he lingered by the door. "I'm not going to listen to some idiots that think they know demons better than I do. I'm going to keep an eye on him. It's my duty to purify him so that he doesn't die."

"That almost happened, Lich-tan," Hyde murmured, almost too quiet for anyone to hear. No one quite knew what would happen if everything had snapped, but death wasn't truly an option. Licht would have been free, for certain—but as to Hyde actually dying—that was another question all together.

"Me purifying you or you dying,  idiot?" Licht shoved him down on the couch, earning an annoyed scowl from Mahiru and Kuro. They had been _comfortable_ and practically asleep. Shuuhei had started the interruption and Mahiru should be grateful for their interference, before he had actually tried to attack the other over his threatening Kuro.

"You both need to take this seriously," Shuuhei glared at all of them. "That one—Greed—he tires of his playthings when he finds something new. He's a monster and should have been killed a long time ago by us."

The expression that Hyde returned to Shuuhei had the man stepping back a pace. It was flat and unforgiving and something in his eyes spoke that yes, he was dangerous, a monster and something to be feared.

"Yeah, I killed them," Hyde leaned back on Licht, who just shoved him off the couch with force, the glow of his lead around his legs as he pressed his boot to Hyde's face to keep him from moving. "They bored me and they were just human anyway." He shoved at Licht's foot with ease and stood up, his scarf fluttering behind him as his power responded to his anger.

Kuro rolled over and sighed. "You're all too tiring for me," he muttered, shifting back to his normal self and gripping Hyde's wrist. "Enough of this," he said softly. "We're not here to fight them right now, Lawless."

Licht gave them a bored look. "Can we get rid of the idiot now?" he asked, staring straight at Shuuhei. "I wanted to talk to the demons without you hovering around." He sniffed. "Your shitty magic interferes with my angelic abilities."

Shuuhei shoved his glasses up his nose with one finger, glaring at all of them. "You're going to regret having your life sucked away from vampires," he threatened. He stalked out the door, slamming it on his way out.

Kuro stepped away from Hyde after Shuuhei had left, looking back towards Mahiru. "He is right," he said, voice quiet. "About how it only ends when you die." Mahiru hated the hesitancy, that uncertainty in Kuro's voice. As if _Mahiru_ hadn't been the one to drag them down, pushing and asking and commanding with no real effort in sight for so long. "I tried to tell you…"

Mahiru snorted and pulled Kuro back down, shaking his head. "You didn't tell me anything," he muttered, and his cheeks were faintly red as he looked away. "Not that I let you tell me anything…" Kuro really had tried to explain at the start, but Mahiru had run right over him and ignored any explanations that Kuro had to give.

Kuro looked up at him, surprised at his words, but shifted back into a cat, rolling over on his back. "Too troublesome to think about," he muttered.

Licht just shook his head and glared at Hyde. "Did you really get rid of your Eves, idiot rat?" he demanded, and his tone was a bit softer than before. "Because of your stupid phrasing about how no one meant anything?" He nudged at Hyde with the still-glowing power of his boots. He hesitated more. "Did you have an Eve before you tricked your way into my life?"

Hyde looked away for a moment, fiddling with his glasses. "Ah.. Lich-tan, that's in the past and all, isn't it?" he asked nervously, eyeing the power that radiated off of Licht with ease. He had no problems in pulling out the lead and all the benefits that went with a servamps power. "Don’t pay attention to that grumpy man…"

Mahiru wondered if it would be best to leave the two of them alone, but it was _his_ room and it was too much effort to actually get up and move. He found himself watching, but with a detached sort of interest and knew that Kuro was rubbing off on him again.

"You're going to tell me the truth, Hyde." There was absolutely no give in that tone and even though Hyde hadn't had any of Licht's blood, the chains that bound them shimmered for a moment before fading. Hyde flinched and looked away.

Mahiru blinked, rubbing at his eyes for a moment, but Kuro only sighed as if he was expecting such a thing sooner or later.

Hyde deflated a little, slumping back down and staring at the chain that he wore, fingers brushing over the damaged tag. "Yeah—I had one before I met you, angel. Had one when I saw you playing in Boston." He kept his gaze away from Licht's intense stare. "She was an actress— _super_ talented, but she got lazy," his voice was almost casual. "I got bored with how she didn't care anymore. She didn't practice; she always went to concerts and dinners and forgot about trying to be better."

Licht's derisive snort was all he needed say on that sort of thing. He despised people who were lazy were what they were given or set out to do. It was part of the reason he had been so contemptuous of Mahiru. If you wanted something, you worked for it and kept working for it.

Hyde's smile turned sly for a moment. "Then I went to the concert she dragged me to and I saw you playing. I heard what everyone said about the talented angel on the stage and I had to have you." He leaned forward, expression intent. "Someone that was so talented… dedicated and spoke so highly of…I wanted you so I took you any way that I could."

Licht's glare could have burned through fabric at that point. "So you decided to be a shitty fake hedgehog to trick me into giving you a name and a gift?"

"I wasn’t a fake hedgehog, Lich-tan!" Hyde's eyes opened wide with feigned hurt. "I'm still a hedgehog, but I'm a vampire, too. Just like nii-san is a cat."  Kuro raised a paw in acknowledgement. "I wasn't _just_ a hedgehog and I knew it was the only way I could have you as my Eve."

"How long were you watching me for?" Licht demanded, his cheeks faintly red. "To know something like that…"

"I read up on you." Hyde grinned. "You were my target, so I made an effort. The game was no fun after you gave me a name, though—you took so long to do it, too." He huffed. "Guess you never got many magical animal companions."

"You're the only one," Licht huffed. "And it's not like I can give you back." He crossed his arms over his chest, poking his finger at Kuro, who only gave him a sleepy look in return. "Is it actually true? I didn't listen to what the damn hedgehog told me, either. Demons always lie, but you might just tell the truth."

Kuro sighed and stretched out, slipping into the more human form, but didn't leave from his comfortable spot across Mahiru's lap, ignoring Mahiru's squawk of annoyance. "It's not a lie," he said softly, running a hand through his hair. "When a human contracts with a servamp… it doesn't go away. We can't even sever the cord." His hand clenched around his bell tightly. He snorted lightly and looked over at his brother. "Unless our Eve dies."

Licht tapped his hands against his leg and only Hyde jerked away, wary of what Licht could do; he had seen him create his piano out of thin air and blood and he was certain that even tapping out something simple would create a reaction. "I think I remember hearing about that woman," he said after a moment. "You're right about her talent. She was good at first and then she started to fail. Didn't mean you had to kill her, shitty rat."

"To have you, I did have to kill her." Hyde's look was unapologetic. "We can't have more than one Eve and she already wasted her time on the stage. Such a weak player for such a short time," he half-sang, jumping to his feet and gesturing dramatically.  "She danced upon the stage and then the curtain fell. Alas, the tears shed for her were as fake as her lines, the hands that clapped for her movements fell silent."

He stopped for a moment, aware of all eyes on him and he gave a fluid shrug. "But you're not like that, Lich-tan. You're interesting. And…" his voice fell quiet for a moment, all the joviality drained out of him. "You made me realize a lot of things, Lich-tan…" he knelt by Licht's side and looked up at him, clutching at the tag again. The truth that Licht had demanded out of him still tugged out the words, mostly unwillingly, but Hyde seemed compelled to see it through to the end.

"Of course, because I'm…"

"…an angel," Hyde finished with a grin. He didn't tell Licht a lot of things about what he knew about him. He didn't tell him that he reminded him of his younger brother, who couldn't stand to hit anything cute or defenseless, but how energetic and violent he could be otherwise. He wanted Licht to meet all of his family, to see what they were really like. He didn't want to give this Eve up and for the first time since Opehlia, he wanted to keep this Eve until his life ran out. "So I want to keep Lich-tan alive."

Licht rolled his eyes and looked ready to kick Hyde away, but he just sighed. "I can keep myself alive, idiot," he muttered, "and it's because of you I'm in danger at all.  The reason any of us are in any danger is because of you demons."

Mahiru felt the tremor run through Kuro at Licht's words, even if they weren't really directed at him and the whisperings of what could only be Kuro's thoughts slipping into the corners of his mind.

_He's not wrong. Mahiru would have had a normal life if he hadn't found me. If I hadn't stuck around and if he hadn't formed that contract._

Mahiru ran his hands through Kuro's hair, in the same gentle motions he had used when Kuro was in his cat form. Kuro turned and blinked up at him and the contented lassitude starting to overtake the dark corners again. Mahiru looked up at Licht, ignoring the way his cheeks were surely red. "I didn't know all of what was going on when I went into it, but …. I don't mind. I… I still have a lot to learn, but looking at it simply, doesn't it make sense to keep learning and moving forward?"

"Hmph," Licht crossed his arms against his chest. "At least you're just depending on a demon anymore. What _can_ you do now? Have you figured it out yet?"

Mahiru looked down at Kuro for a moment, thinking over his words, thinking over a lot of things. Of the power that they could use, about how much stronger and resilient they could be… of what it actually meant to be contracted with the oldest and strongest servamp. Of what possibilities were there to explore once he and Kuro had actually opened to each other.

To do it simply, to not think about what he Kuro to do, but what he could do with the power that Kuro gave him.

Licht kept his gaze on him as he waited for Mahiru to figure it out, but he didn't seem angry to be kept waiting; rather, he seemed pleased that Mahiru was taking his time with the answer.

He decided to keep it simple for the moment. They hadn't really gone over their portion of the fight before they had found Licht and Hyde and he spoke hesitantly, still a little unsure of how much he truly did. Everything had gone so _quickly._ About how his body had felt, if not weightless, but as if he could fly without the use of the broom-like lead. About how he needed to be in a spot and it seemed as if he only took a step forward before he was there.

How he hadn't even needed the chain to be connected to Kuro and moved instinctively to where he needed to be the most useful.

Hyde looked more interested at Mahiru's descriptions, leaning forward and pushing his glasses up. He had more Eves than any of them had, even if they never lasted long and he hadn't used them for battle. "It sounds like you're picking up Nii-san's traits, Mahiru." His voice was thoughtful. "Not that all of us aren't faster than a normal human, but…"

Mahiru blinked down at Kuro, who was completely asleep on top of him, the dark circles under his eyes visible even now. He wanted to ask how Hyde thought the servamp of _Sloth_ was indicative of speed, but he suddenly recalled when he first met Kuro and the other had leaped out of the way with ease, not _flying_ , but just simply gaining height and moving out of the way. When he had moved out of nowhere to kick Belkia into the plate glass window of the store, before pulling Mahiru to safety.

"It just felt… right," he said slowly, keeping the slow stroking through Kuro's hair. "We didn't even have the chain and…"

"Of course not," Licht rolled his eyes. "You were able to use that shitty first try lead of yours without the demon drinking your blood, like I can use mine without this idiot rat," he shoved at Hyde, "even being near me."  
  
"Yeah, but that's a lead…" Mahiru thought about it again, but it made sense. Kuro had opened up to him in a way that he doubted he had to anyone else for a long, long time and even though it had only been recently he had really _noticed_ , parts of Kuro had been meshing into his consciousness ever since he had forced the contract on Kuro.

"I wonder if he regrets it," Mahiru whispered, looking sad for a moment. "He as little of a choice as Licht did." He knew that Kuro wouldn't have killed him; not with knowing about his past. Still… if he had waited…Kuro wouldn't have been chained and dragged into this mess. He would have been _safer_. "And you said he can't get out of it…"

"Not _now_ ," Hyde snorted. "You're in too deep for that. But he could have stayed away after you gave him the gift and the name and he didn't have to drink your blood, Mahiru." His expression was intent. "My brother made the choice to stay with you. I'm just glad that someone's finally taking care of him. Nii-san has been alone too long."  

"Unlike me," Licht smacked Hyde hard upside the back of his head. "You drank my blood before I could even get half a word out and didn't explain shit."

"That's because I figured I would kill you soon enough," Hyde shrugged. "Why give an full explanation? I did tell you that we couldn't be apart. I didn't leave that part out." His smile was somewhat pained. "I'm glad that even if it was just to use us for bait… they didn't separate us, Lich-tan. You're too odd of a human to have let die."

"I won't die so easily," Licht muttered, but some of the tenseness left his body. He had gotten a rude awakening that he could have died if Hyde hadn't been tied up on the wall opposite of him, if they hadn't figured out how to work together to fight Higan. If he hadn't been sucked into the mire of Hyde's broken mind to finally kick some sense into the other.

"What I'm saying, Mahiru—nii-san wouldn't have let you so close to him if he had regretted it all. The fact you can do what you did—and probably a lot more—" he tilted his head at this, he hadn't seen any of it, really, so he couldn't say. "It means that nii-san doesn't regret it."

Mahiru relaxed at the simple words and closed his eyes, uncaring for the moment that Licht and Hyde had come in here for a reason, that there was so much to plan still. So many questions were left unanswered, but for right now, Mahiru didn't resist as Kuro's sense of self dragged him into a light slumber.

Licht shook his head at the two idiots. He couldn't actually complain about Mahiru acting more like the demon he was chained with, because even if it was _Sloth_ , he actually forced Mahiru into realizing that doing everything by half, simply because he thought no one else could do it, was the wrong way to go. He grabbed Hyde by the ear as he stood up.

"Let's go, idiot rat. We'll talk with them later when they're not sleeping in front of guests."

"Ow—angel… that hurts—you don't have to grab me…." Hyde protested all the way out the door. None of the C3 employees were nearby as they exited to go to their own room, but Licht was all too aware of them watching their every move. His grip tightened on Hyde and he ignored the protests. He wasn't going to give up the rat to anyone else. He had barely started making him more like an angel.

**Author's Note:**

> So this started with the concept of "you know, I don't think Eves can get out of the contract unless they die" and I went around three different stories before this one decided to work for me.


End file.
